Several newspapers are reporting that fears of a recession have diminished as the UK Service sector grew strongly in August. The Markit/CIPS purchasing managers’ index showed that activity in UK services saw its largest month-on-month rise in the survey’s history. The index rose from 47.4 in July to 52.9 in August, this adding to reported recoveries in manufacturing and construction.
Chris Williamson, chief business economist at Markit, is reported as saying that last month’s recovery in services wiped out a shock fall in July following the Brexit vote. He noted that “a record rise in the services PMI adds to the encouraging news seen in the manufacturing and construction sectors in August to suggest that an imminent recession will be avoided”.
BBC News Financial Times, Page: 3 The Daily Telegraph, Business, Page: 1 Independent i, Page: 40 Daily Mail, Page: 12 The Guardian, Page: 18